Locum occupational therapy in Australia sits at a busy crossroads: AHPRA registration obligations, NDIS pricing rules, private-client billing, ABN and GST requirements, and super contributions all apply at once. Whether you are picking up sessional shifts through an agency, contracting directly with disability service providers, or building a private caseload on the side, this guide covers the core compliance and financial foundations for 2025-26.
This article is general information only and is not personal financial, tax, or legal advice.
AHPRA Registration for OTs
All occupational therapists in Australia must hold general registration with the Occupational Therapy Board of Australia (OTBA), a National Board under AHPRA. There is no specialist registration category for OTs, so general registration is the standard practising credential regardless of whether you work in paediatrics, neurological rehab, aged care, or NDIS supports.
Key ongoing obligations include:
- Continuing professional development (CPD): The OTBA requires at least 20 CPD hours per year (at least 5 interactive), with a mix of active and passive learning. All CPD must be recorded and is auditable by AHPRA.
- Recency of practice: If you have a gap in practice, the Board's recency standard requires evidence of sufficient recent OT work to maintain registration. National Boards are currently reviewing both CPD and recency standards, with public consultation open until 17 July 2026.
- Professional indemnity insurance (PII): You must hold PII before each shift. As a locum or sole trader you are personally responsible for your own cover; agency contracts often require a minimum of $10 million per claim for professional indemnity and $20 million for public liability. Always confirm limits in writing before accepting an engagement.
Sessional Australia's AHPRA and CPD tracking tools let you log CPD hours, track registration renewal dates, and store insurance certificates in one place.
NDIS Pricing: What OTs Can Charge in 2025-26
The NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits (PAPL), published by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), sets the maximum prices registered providers can charge. The 2025-26 PAPL (updated November 2025) sets the following price limits for occupational therapy:
- Weekday daytime: $193.99 per hour
Higher price limits apply on Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays. Check the current PAPL for the exact weekend and public-holiday line items, because they are set separately and are not a simple loading on the weekday rate. These are price limits, not set fees. You and a participant can agree a lower rate. Most NDIS therapy supports fall under the Capacity Building: Improved Daily Living budget category. Capacity Building budgets are ring-fenced and cannot be shifted to other categories by participants.
From 2025-26, travel time is billed at 50% of your hourly rate (approximately $97.00 per hour at the standard weekday rate), rather than the full rate. This change meaningfully reduces billable travel revenue for community-based OTs who visit participants at home or in school.
GST and NDIS: The majority of NDIS-funded therapy supports are GST-free under the GST Act, provided the supply meets the definition of a disability support or health service. In practice, most OT invoice lines to NDIS participants do not attract GST. If you also take private or non-NDIS clients, track those streams separately for BAS purposes.
Registered vs Unregistered NDIS Provider
As a locum OT you have two operating paths:
Registered provider: Mandatory if you want to work with Agency-managed participants or deliver supports listed as requiring registration (including most specialised OT interventions). Registration means audits, policies, and ongoing NDIS Commission compliance. Most OTs working through disability organisations or large agencies do so under the agency's provider registration rather than their own.
Unregistered provider: You can work directly with self-managed or plan-managed participants without your own NDIS registration. Many locum OTs operate this way for private NDIS work. You must still hold AHPRA registration and PII, and you must comply with the NDIS Code of Conduct regardless of registration status.
Private and Contract Rates: What OTs Earn as Locums
Outside the NDIS, locum OT rates vary by setting and engagement type:
- Agency-placed locum (hospital, aged care, community): Typically $70 to $120 per hour all-inclusive, depending on state, setting, and urgency. Remote and rural placements often carry a significant loading.
- Direct-contract with a provider or organisation: Negotiated ABN-to-ABN, commonly $90 to $140 per hour.
- Private fee-for-service (non-NDIS): No price caps apply. Many private OTs charge $150 to $220 per hour, with higher rates for hand therapy, driving assessments, and medico-legal work.
When comparing agency rates to direct-contract rates, factor in what the agency provides: WorkCover, PII, admin, and shift sourcing. On a direct ABN arrangement you carry all of those costs yourself.
ABN, GST, and BAS as a Sole-Trader OT
If you work as an independent contractor rather than as an employee, you need an ABN. Registration is free via the Australian Business Register (abr.gov.au).
GST threshold: Once your gross annual turnover reaches or exceeds $75,000, you must register for GST. For a locum OT working regular shifts, this threshold is typically reached quickly. Once registered, you charge GST on taxable supplies (most non-NDIS services), collect it from clients, and remit it to the ATO via a Business Activity Statement (BAS). NDIS-exempt supplies are excluded from your GST-collected total but still count toward turnover for the registration threshold.
Most sole-trader OTs lodge BAS quarterly. Keep clean records of NDIS-exempt and taxable income separately from day one.
Super at 12%: What Sole-Trader OTs Need to Know
From 1 July 2025 the Super Guarantee (SG) rate increased to 12%. If an agency or organisation engages you under a contract that is principally for your labour, they may owe super on your payments regardless of whether you hold an ABN. Check each engagement carefully.
As a sole trader you are not legally required to pay yourself super, but doing so is strongly advisable. Voluntary concessional (before-tax) contributions up to the $32,500 annual cap for 2026-27 are tax-deductible and can significantly reduce your taxable income in high-earning locum years.
Mileage and Vehicle Deductions
Community OTs and those visiting participants across multiple sites can claim travel costs. The ATO cents-per-kilometre method allows you to claim 91 cents per kilometre for the 2025-26 income year (consistent with 2024-25), capped at 5,000 business kilometres per car. Use a logbook or a mileage-tracking app from day one: the ATO requires a record of the number of kilometres and the work purpose of each trip. The Sessional cents-per-km calculator makes this straightforward across multiple workplaces.
How Sessional Helps OTs Manage Locum Admin
Sessional Australia's OT-specific dashboard brings together everything in one place: AHPRA registration and CPD expiry reminders, shift and earnings tracking across agencies and direct clients, GST/BAS-ready invoicing with auto-chasers for overdue NDIS and private invoices, a super tracker that flags when agencies may owe you SG, and a tax-reserve calculator so you are never caught short at BAS time. You can also generate a compliant invoice with your ABN, GST treatment, and payment terms in seconds. See pricing for Free, Plus, and Pro tiers.
Sources
- Occupational Therapy Board of Australia - Registration
- AHPRA - Regulating Australia's occupational therapists
- Occupational Therapy Board of Australia - Registration Standards
- NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits 2025-26 - NDIS
- NDIS Price Guide 2025-26: Every Rate Explained - Centre of Hope
- NDIS Price Guide 2026: OT Pricing Changes - Cas Health
- Super Guarantee Rate - ATO
- Concessional Contributions Cap - ATO
- Cents per Kilometre Method - ATO
- NDIS Taxation 2026 - Affective Care
- How to Register as an NDIS Sole Trader - Sprintlaw